Comptroller Peter Franchot ends decadeslong career in public service

The soft yellow walls in Peter Franchot’s office are bare, just a scattering of nails and hooks that once hung dozens of pictures and certificates and plaques. Now they’re all packed up, filling four cardboard boxes stacked near the door — a visual sign in the change in Annapolis leadership and Franchot’s long career. Franchot, who as comptroller is the state’s chief tax collector, is closing out a decadeslong career in public service that started with a stint in the Army and on Capitol Hill, then progressed to the Maryland General Assembly and his last stop as comptroller.